


Recapture

by Novian



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Angst, Ardyn is an asshole, Canon Compliant, Episode Prompto Spoilers, Gen, Poor Prompto, Surprising NOBODY, chapter 13 spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-02
Updated: 2018-02-02
Packaged: 2019-03-12 20:06:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,912
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13554627
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Novian/pseuds/Novian
Summary: Prompto's escaped from the Magitek Facility, and is finally on his way to reunite with his friends and retrieve the crystal.Until a certain someone reappears.Set after Episode Prompto.





	Recapture

**Author's Note:**

> My first fic - and it's a generic 'Prompto gets captured' - I needed CLOSURE after the end of Episode Prompto, dammit!
> 
> Huge thanks to my awesome beta whistle13 over on fanfiction.net!
> 
> And without further ado...

“I never stood a chance, did I?” 

It feels surprisingly good to say it, to finally realise days of struggling, of falling, getting up and falling again, lead to this. Prompto’s going to die - that’s nearly certain at this point. There was only so much he could’ve done after he found himself pitted against a Grade A freaking psychopath.

After saying goodbye to Aranea, he'd made it all the way to Zegnautus alone, fending off hordes of daemons and MTs as he made his way through Gralea.

As far as he knew, the city had never been particularly lively, but it was quiet. Too quiet. Still, he wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth, which looks like it's about to prove his undoing.

If Gralea had been quiet, Zegnautus was near silent, completely empty - lulling Prompto into a false sense of security. Almost as soon as he'd found the security tapes, he'd heard footsteps behind him, footsteps belonging to a certain bastard chancellor who, Prompto was just beginning to realise, was most likely behind the whole setup.

Prompto almost wishes Ardyn’s going kill him here and now - then he won't be able to lure his friends into a trap. Ardyn knows that too, of course - knows Prompto’s friends are so stupid that they’ll risk themselves and the fate of the whole damn world to come and get him. 

Especially since they don't know what he is. At least, Prompto’s fairly sure they don’t, if he was right, and Noct hadn’t meant to hurt him. He would want to hurt him, though, if he did find out.

Ardyn steps closer.

Prompto steps back, his hands trembling round the gun. 

“That’s the sad part - you did, once.”

He’s probably lying, Prompto knows that - but there’s that little spark of hope again, the hope that somehow he could get out of this. Hell if he knows how - he never signed up for this, and as guilty as he feels for thinking it, it's true. He just wanted to be there for his friend, and now he's cornered by the asshole who was responsible for everything that had happened on this mad road trip. 

Still, Prompto clings to that hope, because if his friends are coming for him, he wants to be in one piece when they get here. So it isn't all in vain, even when (if, stay positive, if) they abandon him. He finally manages to speak, though his voice shakes, stutters and cracks in the middle: “You- I- how?” Barely coherent, but Ardyn seems satisfied, and steps closer still. Prompto moves back again, feeling his back collide with the cold steel wall. Nowhere to go.

“And just when I thought there might be something between those ears, too! You walked right into the keep - practically handed yourself over on a silver platter, my boy.” Something about his condescending tone makes Prompto cringe back against the wall. 

He tries his best to glare, but he probably just looks scared. He is scared. He could puke any minute, but he tries his best to fight off the nausea.

“After escaping your home, too. It was almost like you wanted to be caught!” Ardyn chuckles again, and set a proprietary, surprisingly gentle hand on Prompto’s shoulder that he hits away as fast as he can.

“Keep your hands off of me,” Prompto snaps, anger rising in his stomach. “It’s not my home. My- my home is in Lucis, and you know it. I’m not the machine you tried to make of me, y-you bastard!” 

Prompto realises it was probably a bad idea to insult Ardyn right as he hit him. The slap hits sudden and loud, leaving his face aching, and he barely bites back a cry. 

Ardyn tuts. “Ah-ah, my dear boy. Can’t insult your host, mm?” Sweet Six, he’s completely nuts. Prompto points the gun at him again, in the hope it will persuade him to back the fuck off. 

Annoyingly, Ardyn doesn’t seem fazed, despite the fact there's a gun pointed at him. Prompto should fire. In fact, if he fires now, this will all be over. Firing seems like a very good idea. Maybe he should. But for some reason, he can't quite persuade himself to pull the trigger. 

"Give me-" Prompto internally curses himself for stuttering again, showing weakness _again_ , "give me one good reason why I shouldn't shoot you right now." He raises the gun again, levelling it at Ardyn's forehead - determined not to let his hesitation show. He seems pleased, more that anything, and Prompto tightens his grip on the gun.

"Temper, temper! I couldn't have seen this coming - the prince's precious friend, gone serial killer? Why! What would Noct say?" 

Dammit, Prompto hadn't thought of that. Noct would understand though, right? He would - Ardyn had killed Lunafreya. All of this was his fault...  
wait. 

His fault - that's what Noct said on the train.  
When he woke up on the train, Noct said he'd seen Ardyn - and didn't seem particularly murderous, like he had been seconds before.

Ardyn could manipulate appearances, he'd seen as much on that security footage where Ravus died.  
And Ardyn had clearly been pulling the strings in that shit show back at the MT facility - almost as if he'd known from the start. 

Oh Six. It’s like the final piece of a puzzle slotting into place. Prompto shrinks further against the wall - it feels like he'd been punched. And that would explain why Noct pushed him off the train! All of this made too much horrific sense.

"It was a trick..." Prompto breathes, suddenly a hundred thousand times more scared than he was before.

"Oh, do speak up - I'd hate to miss what insult you'd like to throw at me next," Ardyn drawls.

Prompto's hands grip the handle of the gun so hard that they turn white. "Back on the train," he snarls, pressing himself into the wall to get as far away from Ardyn as he possibly can, "It was never Noct - it was you, wasn't it?"

Ardyn claps his hands, a grin spreading across his face. "So close! I'm afraid you're not quite there, little birdie, but far more intelligent that I would have expected from a defect, after all..."

"Shut up," Prompto hisses. He knows Ardyn’s just trying to get under his skin, but he can't help but feel ill. He has to work it out, has to know if Noct really hates him or not. 

He has to think - and he can't help but wonder if it were Ignis, here in his position, would he have worked it out by now? If it were Gladio, would he be on his way out by now? Almost undeniably. 

But he's just Prompto, barely human, barely an MT, barely _anybody_ , really. Not quite good enough, never good enough, never enough. 

Dammit. Noct always told him he was good enough, even when he messed up, even if he put everyone in danger because he was a screw up. Then why did he attack him? All your fault... if it wasn't Ardyn, it would be Noct who pushed him off the train. 

But something isn't right - Noct would never hurt him. _Never_. He has to be missing something. 

But what?

“Have you figured it out yet, dear boy?”

Oh.

Noct would never hurt Prompto - but who _would_ he hurt?

It wasn’t too much of a stretch to assume that Ardyn could change other people’s appearances, too.

So what if… Noct hadn’t seen him - what if…

“Noct saw Ardyn…” Prompto whispers, suddenly furious. “That’s it, isn’t it? You tricked him - you tricked him, didn’t you?” His tone turns accusing, threatening, and he raises the gun even higher.

A predatory grin spreads across Ardyn’s face. “Well, well! Perhaps you’re not quite as useless as dear Noct thought.” 

Ouch. That hurt. There’s a little twinge of hurt in his gut, but Prompto settles for anger. “Who - who the hell are you? Why are you doing this? Wha-“ 

Ardyn cuts him off with a wave of his hand. “That’s for me to know, and your little friends to find out, of course. Who knows? Maybe they’ll tell you, too - if they can be bothered to find you, that is.” Ardyn grins again, and Prompto suddenly remembers exactly how much trouble he’s in.

“O-of course they're coming for me!” Prompto replies, just a beat too late. His hesitation only widens Ardyn’s grin as he steps in again. 

“How about we find out?” Prompto was somehow even more unnerved by the self satisfied smile on Ardyn’s face as he moves nearer still, boxing Prompto in to the point where his gun was jammed against Ardyn’s chest. “A wager, if you will. To see if those little ‘friends’ of yours will care enough to rescue you when they know what you _really_ are.”

“Fuck you,” Prompto hisses, but Ardyn seems unperturbed by the gun at his chest and seizes hold of Prompto’s arm. 

He immediately reacts, yanking his arm away with all the force he can muster to little avail against the iron grip. “Get off me!” Prompto yells, desperately trying to pry the ice cold hand around his forearm away. Ardyn twists his arm behind his back and shoves, _hard_ , slamming him against the wall, effectively pinning his free arm and oh Six he’s trapped he’s stuck he’s going to die and his gun’s digging into his ribcage. Right, shit, gun. 

“No point in fighting, little MT. You’ll need your strength later, no doubt.” How is he so calm? He didn’t even feel Prompto struggling, like he was a fly - an annoyance and no more. “Don’t worry, I’m sure you will find the accommodation suitable…”

“No- don’t-“ Prompto's voice breaks as he tries to pull his gun free. “Let go- damn it!”

Ardyn says something, but Prompto didn't quite catch it. Everything’s fuzzy, too loud, too bright, and he knows he just has to get his arm free, then - yes. 

It finally comes loose, and Prompto’s chest slams painfully against the wall - but that doesn't matter, because now he can twist and aiming doesn't really matter because Ardyn is right there and-

The rapport of the gun is painful, leaving Prompto’s ears ringing, but the painful push on his arm immediately eases off, followed by a soft thud from behind him. He lets out a breath he didn't even know he'd been holding and turns around - nearly tripping over the body.

Oh - the body. He's actually done it - he's killed Ardyn. The body - because that's all it is now - lies spreadeagled and lifeless, glassy eyes staring up at the ceiling and, above them, a bullet hole. Hell of a shot considering he couldn’t actually see where it went. 

It was self defense, right? Ardyn had been hurting him - his aching arm said as much. Gods - Prompto’s a murderer. But Ardyn deserved it, for everything he did. That’s what he tells himself. Prompto laughs quietly, slightly hysterically, and starts towards the door, carefully stepping over Ardyn’s outstretched arm.

Next step should be finding Noct. He can probably make it to the Crystal, seeing as the only thing left to stop him is the daemons, but - and he doesn't want to admit it to himself - he just wants out. He wants to see his friends again. No - he’s _going_ to see his friends again, and all of a sudden hope flares back to life in his chest. He’s going to see his friends, everything’s going to be fine, they’re going to get the crystal and bring back the light a-

“And to think we were getting along so well, too!” An exaggerated, far too familiar sigh comes from behind him. “What a pity.”

_No way._

There was no way, no way in hell this could be happening.

Prompto wheels around, his heart suddenly trying to beat out of his chest and his lungs too tight. He has to be hearing things. But no, there he is, rubbing the top of his forehead exactly where a fucking bullet hole was just ten seconds ago.

He hears a tiny squeak and dimly wonders where it came from a half second before he realises it was him. Bile rising in his throat, he half considers making a run for it; but Ardyn can swap appearances and take bullet wounds and gods knew what else - Prompto wouldn't get far.

“What- what the fuck?” Not exactly eloquent, but Prompto’s surprised he's still together enough to speak at all. “I shot you!” His legs tremble and his stomach churns - he’s never been so scared in his entire life. Ardyn had been lying earlier - Prompto has never stood a chance. Not against… whatever the hell he is.

“Indeed you did - and how rude of you! I haven’t even tried to kill you, yet.” Yeah, Ardyn knows he’s won, if his self satisfied smile is anything to go by. 

Anger rising despite his utter terror, Prompto snaps. “Bullshit! You chucked me off a train, I was in the middle of a bloody snowstorm for gods know how long, then you stuck me with a fucking death worm that was trying to destroy the whole damn planet! You-“

“Ah - language!” _Language!?_ Just who the hell does this guy think he is? Prompto takes in a breath to continue, but Ardyn cuts him off. “If you don’t recall, it was your dear Noct who pushed you off that train. I helped you out of that snowstorm when you were half dead from hypothermia - it was a mere twist of fate that just so happened to lead you to your father,” he says patronisingly, as if explaining something simple to a small child. 

Prompto nearly starts giving Ardyn a piece of his mind, but realised it’s probably a bad idea to yell at the guy who can take a bullet to the head without flinching. His hand goes to his gun and he points it at Ardyn again. Even if it is practically useless, it’s a tiny scrap of comfort in whatever the hell’s happening. 

“Who are you?” Prompto’s too scared to feel ashamed when his voice breaks - again. “How did you even…”

“Simple, really.” Ardyn adjusts his hat, and Prompto gets a sick sense of satisfaction at the bullet hole on the brim. “I’m immortal.”

Has the floor started to sway? He wouldn't be surprised if it had, given the way his legs were about to give out and he could hardly stand upright - because Ardyn is immortal and there's absolutely nothing he could do, nothing anyone could do. They’d been fighting a losing battle the whole time. 

Tears start to prick the corners of Prompto’s eyes and there’s an unmistakable shake in his voice when he spoke. “That’s - there’s no way - that can’t be - that’s impossible,” he finally says, desperate not to cry, because damnit, he isn't two, and he's not going to show weakness although he’s about to die...

“Oh, dear,” Ardyn laughs, damn him, clearly enjoying the terror on Prompto’s face. “You have no idea what’s possible.”

What the hell is he on about? Prompto doesn't have the time to think about it, because Ardyn’s speaking again.

“I’ll take that, thank you,” he says almost gently, but Prompto knows better than to trust him.  
Ardyn takes the gun out of his shaking hand - and Prompto doesn't even resist. He knows the gun he's had since the start of this whole Six damned journey couldn’t help him now. 

“Who- who…” Dammit, he can't even get a full sentence out. “Who are you?”

Ardyn sighs as he pockets the gun, and Prompto suddenly wishes he’d fought just a bit more. “I thought I told you already. It’s not for you to know, but your precious little friends, and who knows? They may even tell you - should they come for you, of course…”

As Ardyn continues to rant, Prompto begins to tune out - he can barely hear him anyway, and he knows if he’s going to have any chance he needs to run, and run now. Maybe he could get away like that? It’s a start, at any rate. At least Ardyn’s moved away now, probably because he thinks Prompto’s completely given up. 

That couldn’t be further from the truth now, because Ardyn’s moved away from the door and he has a clean sprint to the tantalising door. It’s just sitting open, and Ardyn’s got his back turned. Is he still talking? Doesn’t matter now, as Prompto’s subconsciously shifting his feet, ready to run. He’s got no time to waste. 

Ardyn’s still talking, something about “breaking trust” and “really, I don’t know why you’re surprised”. Prompto would roll his eyes if he wasn’t so scared. Still, though, Ardyn’s back is turned, and his path is clear, so he crosses his fingers and _runs._

He sprints for the door. Ardyn says something, but Prompto doesn’t care, he just needs to keep running, he’s nearly there, he can do this. There’s a funny thing in the corner of his vision - the only way he can describe it is a black light, or energy of some kind. Before he can think about it - Prompto’s hit by a truck. 

Or at least it feels that way. A gigantic, terrifying weight slams into his side with the force of a behemoth, sending him flying like a rag doll. He cries out as he slams face first into the control panel on the other side of the room with a sickening crack. Pain explodes white hot through his chest - he’s probably broken a rib, his face aches, and he’s winded too. Gasping, he slides off the control panel to the floor, but he can’t move an inch.

Through the blackness beginning to gather at the corners of his vision, Prompto can just make out Ardyn’s shoes, walking closer to stop right before his face. All of a sudden, a harsh kick connects exactly on his broken rib. He screams, pain flaring back to life, and writhes onto his back to try and get up, get away, he just needs to get away.

As before, he doesn’t get far. Ardyn’s foot comes down again, this time slamming onto his chest, pinning him in place. Desperate, Prompto tries to dislodge it to little avail as Ardyn’s voice rings through his ears from a million miles away.

“What did I tell you?” Ardyn’s gone right back to that patronising tone, and Prompto struggles harder. Panic courses through him - he’s never been so scared, never in his entire life. 

All logic dictates he should give in, there’s no way he can win this, but something - call it pride, spite, fear, whatever - keeps him struggling, squirming, even as utter despair sets in. He’s beaten, he knows that. At Ardyn’s mercy - Six, the thought alone makes him want to throw up, preferably on the boot still stamping into his chest. He has no idea what’s coming next, aside for, the fact that it won’t be good. 

At least Ardyn’s going to keep him alive - he thinks. Conniving immortal bastard he is, there’ll be a reason. Hope - a tiny flicker of it, but still hope - reignites in Prompto as he realises it’s probably because Noct is coming for him. 

(Or the Crystal, but they’ll find him on the way, if he’s not dead by then. He hopes.)

Fight renewed, Prompto smiles despite his split lip as Ardyn stoops down, dragging him to eye level by his matted hair. He tells Ardyn exactly where he can stick his ‘accomodation’, and tries his best not to flinch as a broken nose is added to a laundry list of injuries. 

Although he’s terrified out of his mind and everything is in more pain than he ever thought possible, as he’s dragged to his feet he rams his knee straight into Ardyn's groin, hard, so hard that he lets out a groan and momentarily releases his hold. Even when he runs, only to be dragged back by the MTs Ardyn had the foresight to position outside the door, Prompto holds his head high, and lets his captor know exactly what he thinks of him, his mother, and his fashion sense. 

Prompto can’t help but feel a small hint of pride when Ardyn’s face contorts to an expression of offended anger, even as (on Ardyn’s command, of course) the MT that wasn't holding his arms fast started to beat the shit out of him.

He’s scared. Of course he’s scared. Who wouldn't be, in his situation? More than likely, he’s going to end up dead. But when he thinks back on everything that’s happened, this whole mad adventure? Prompto knows, knows deep down, that his friends are coming for him.

He's just got to be alive when they make it.

So he fights back. Ignoring the searing pain in his chest, he struggles and squirms and kicks to try and defend himself. The punches keep coming one after the other, as Ardyn watches in amusement. There’s not much he can do, sandwiched the way he is, but he takes great pleasure in ducking away time and time again. It’s not too hard. The robots seem to be jerky - well, jerkier than normal. 

There’s not much time to ponder it though, because the punches stop as Ardyn waves a hand. He looks annoyed, more than anything. Panting heavily, Prompto grins at him. It's the closest he get to flipping him off restrained like this. Maybe that was a mistake, because if Ardyn was annoyed before, now he's _pissed_.

Shaking slightly, Prompto braces himself for whatever's about to happen as Ardyn stalks closer. This has to be what a trapped animal feels like, unable to run, no option but to stare death in the face. Surprisingly, Ardyn doesn't hit him. Instead, he grabs Prompto’s face bruisingly hard, forcing him to meet his eyes - then leans in, so close that his breath is warm on Prompto’s ear. For some reason that scares him more than the punch he expected. 

“You may be laughing now, little MT,” he whispers, as though he’s sharing a terrible secret, “but I can promise you you’re going to regret this later.”

There’s not much time for Prompto to wonder what that meant, as Ardyn suddenly clamps a hand over his mouth and pinches his nose shut.

All rational thought goes out the window as Prompto’s oxygen is cut off - he panics, thrashing against the MTs that are still implacably clamped onto his arms, to little avail. He can’t think, can’t scream, can’t escape, can’t _breath._

As he passes out, time slows down. His vision blackens, his knees buckle, and in the last few seconds before his mind follows, he thinks.

Undoubtedly, Prompto’s scared. He's goddamn petrified, so frightened he can hardly move. He's always been scared, right from the beginning of this whole damn journey, but his friends had always been there with reassuring smiles to remind him that it would be okay. That he was good enough.

Maybe they didn't know his secret. Maybe they still don't know. Deep down, he wonders if it will really change their opinion much. He doesn't feel any different to them.

After everything they've been through - Prompto has to believe they're coming for him. Even if they only come for the crystal, he’ll fight until his last breath to see Noct again, to put things right, to try and make them understand.

He's scared. 

But for Noctis, he’ll keep fighting.

**Author's Note:**

> As a side note, I really wish that the aftermath of Episode Prompto was playable like Chapter 13 Verse 2.
> 
> Thanks for reading! It's my first (published) fic, so I'd really appreciate any comments, kudos or concrit you have to offer! ^-^


End file.
